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Page 257
mitment to Salisbury, reminding both of them at the last moment that Joanna was Alinor's daughter and not his to dispose of, he had been delighted with the idea. The shock was of infinite benefit in that it gave Ian time to control his sense of outrage and permitted him to ask quietly, "Why no? Do you object to the boy's bastardy? Salisbury is mad for him and may well have him legitimatized. In any case, he is no pauper. Both the boy's grandfather and Salisbury have assigned property to be his, and I am sure Salisbury would find more to give him"
"Do not be foolish. Why should I care that the boy is a bastard! His mother was not unknown or ignoble. We know his blood, and it is good on both sides. And you should know I do not care about what lands he brings, either. Joanna will be rich enough to marry as she pleasesand that is what she shall do."
"Marry as she pleases?"
Ian could have been no more amazed if Alinor had said Joanna would grow wings, fly off, and live in a tree. Girls simply did not choose their own husbands. Kind and thoughtful parents tried to match temperament and age so that their daughters would be happy. Ambitious parents used daughters as pawns to further their plans for increased power or land, without a thought for the girl's fate. Girls, after all, were born to marry to cement land boundaries or to breed children for a mingling of blood lines. Their feelings about the husband who shared those duties were totally irrelevant. Older women sometimes did make a free choice, as Alinor hadwell, almost freebut not young girls.
Intemperate words rose to Alinor's lips, but before they poured out she realized that they might also be cruel words. Certainly on this day, it would be a bitter thing to remind Ian that her first marriage had been to her own pleasure; indeed, that she had followed Simon halfway around the world, scaling mountains and crossing deserts only to be near him. To say that at this time

 
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